The Resources and Engineering Skills Alliance collects and analyses South Australian resources sector jobs data and has done so for more than five years. The Resources and Engineering Skills Alliance’s South Australia Mining and Energy Jobs Report is a leading indicator of hiring intentions and market sentiment.

In February 2018, 287 mining and resources advertisements for jobs were placed for roles in South Australia, the highest results RESA has recorded since February 2013. This growth has been consistent over the past 24 months and indicates a strong recovery from the downturn and the impact of economic drivers on the resources sector in SA.

Job Ads analysis for 2016-18 indicates that the number of jobs advertised has remained significantly and consistently higher when indexed in a simple comparison against the corresponding month in the previous year. The graph below shows shows this year’s result as a percentage of the previous year’s advertisements. Twenty-one months of positive growth provides a leading indicator of employment intentions (labour demand) in the South Australian Mining Industry.

The graph below shows that over one third of the February 2018 vacancies were for trade level occupations and 25% for professional roles across industry sectors. There was a shift from January with trade roles dropping over 15% and the need for operators growing by over 10%.

In February 31% of roles were in the Maintenance, Mechanical/Metal fields. The proportion of Equipment operators, Engineering/Engineering Management and Drilling and Blasting roles (mostly drill fitters) were similar to January.

In February the Adelaide metropolitan area continued to be the region for the majority of the positions advertised. With Coober Pedy and Outback SA continuing to be the second most advertised region. 93 different companies listed vacancies, up 5 from last month which is indicative of an increasing range of companies operating and growing to support the sector.

56% of the roles advertised were explicitly for non-metropolitan South Australia. Of the vacancies advertised in Adelaide 26% were for Mechanical /Maintenance occupations, there was also an increase to 20% Engineering occupations. 50% of vacancies are for occupations that are likely to be undertaken in regional SA but listed as Adelaide vacancies.

Of the vacancies advertised in Coober Pedy and Outback SA 35% were for Mechanical/Metal - Maintenance, 30 % were Equipment Operator vacancies- which is expected, also of note 9% of vacancies were for Electrotechnology roles.

7 vacancies were listed for jobs interstate - FIFO from ADL and an additional 5 vacancies (not included in total) for positions requiring relocation interstate.

During February the number of positions advertised was more than double the vacancies listed in the same period in 2017. This continues consistent growth in employment opportunities in the resources sector since February 2016.

In addition to jobs for South Australians a number of advertisements were placed for resources sector jobs requiring relocation interstate. Hourly wage rates varied for trade positions from $35ph to $75ph (interstate). The attraction of highly paid job opportunities interstate could put greater pressure on South Australian companies in job roles already in demand.

Author: Jodie Badcock

B.Ed

Jodie has over 20 years’ experience in the development and implementation of employment and educational programs. She has project managed national industry driven government funded programs ($5m) and, as a technical specialist, managed the maintenance and development of the Australian nationally endorsed competencies and qualifications for the resources and infrastructure sectors.

Her experience has included industry and enterprise workforce analysis and capability studies commissioned by state government and industry bodies, particularly in mining and the civil construction sectors. She has experience in project management, workforce planning and compliance, program development and implementation, facilitating industry consultation and contract management.

Jodie has worked in Central America and the United Kingdom and provided VET consulting/advisory services to companies in Malaysia.